Strange Habits
by cerellethal
Summary: Damon is in love with Elena, unquestionably so. What is questionable is how Elena feels about HIM. He believes that she does return his feelings but she is adamant that it's Stefan that she loves. He's got nothing but time for her to realize how she feels but won't watch her be with Stefan. So he leaves Mystic Falls, to give her space- and for himself.(Delena)(S3spoilers)
1. Chapter 1

"This thing that is happening right here? Can't ever happen! It just can't. Oh my gosh, if it did, I would I wouldn't be any better, Damon!" Elena shoved him away, away from his lips that felt the warmth from her breath a moment before was now bare.

She didn't need to finish the sentence, he knew what she meant. _I wouldn't be any better than her, than Katherine._

 _You could never be like her._ His words never made it to his mouth, even though he knew in his bones that Elena would never be like her, the similarities stopped at their shared appearance.

With Katherine, it was all forbidden, new and enticing, he was so sure that he was in love with her. He would've continued to believe that it _was_ love for the rest of his death if he hadn't of met Elena. They were opposites and whatever it was he had with Katherine it didn't come close to the way he felt about the creature in front of him.

"I care about you, Damon, but I love Stephen." She looked directly at him as she spoke, clearly hoping he would get the message.

"Very convincing, Elena. I almost believed you." He held up his hand with an inch between his thumb and forefinger.

"I am serious, Damon. I love him, it will always be him."

"And I'm sure that a fruit fly thinks it will always be alive." He mutters so quickly Elena didn't understand.

"What are you saying?" She asks well crossing her arms.

Angered annoyance flashed across his face and a split second later he had Elena's back against the tree, his hand on the protecting the back of her head from the bark.

"Huh!"

"You actually believe in what you're saying but you don't understand!"

"Then tell me, Damon! Tell me what I don't get!" She yelled back at him.

"You love me, Elena. I feel it. And Stefan knows that what you feel for me goes deeper than 'caring''."

"No!" Anger jumped in her face and fresh tears slid down her cheek.

It was a lie, whether she knew it or not. She might love Stefan but she loved him as well, if not more. Why didn't she see that? Because she met him first? Is that why she felt so loyal to him?

In that moment, he wanted to make her remember. Remember how they really met the first time, how she had stunned him with her likeness to Katherine, how she somehow made him feel humble and curious for the first time in a while.

That would confuse her, he realized, it wouldn't make anything better.

She wasn't ready to admit it to herself, let alone anyone else, but Damon knew how she really felt. Who was he to rush her?

He let Elena go in a flash of movement and when she looked to for him, he stood ten feet away.

"I won't force you to a conclusion you're not ready to make. I'm better than that but I will not sit around waiting for you to come to your senses while you prance around and pretend with Stefan."

Before Elena can reply, Damon tosses the car keys at her.

"What? Damon, what are you doing?" She asks in a thick voice.

Damon nods towards her car at the end of the driveway, where it was waiting after they made sure the Originals had left town after Finn died.

"Go home, Elena. I need to be somewhere." Then he was gone from sight.

She stormed to the driver's side of the car and slammed it shut after getting in, even over the start of the engine roared to life, Damon could hear the phone call she was making.

"Elena? Everything all good at the Mikaelson's?" Stefan's voice came through the static of the phone.

"Yeah, that's fine. It's your brother, I'm having an issue with."

Stefan's voice lowered an octave.

"What did he do?"

"Nothing worth repeating. I just called to let you know I'm on my way home."

"Where 's Damon?"

"Probably looking for a drink in a skirt."

Elena pulled away from the driveway and headed back to towards town. Damon dropped down from the tree he had shamelessly hidden in and watched the brake lights disappear around the next bend.

He was leaving Mystic Falls, he had to. He should visit Yvette, it had been such a long time since he last seen her when he had almost killed her. But if Damon was going to avoid everyone he had tried to kill, or they him, he wouldn't be able to see anyone. Plus, he found that he missed this one friend a little more than he'd care to admit.


	2. Chapter 2

Damon pushed his way through the brush, overgrown and wild, untouched by a hiker's foot in at least ten years, let alone landscaping equipment. He was somewhere deep in the Canadian wilderness, forests and mountains surrounded him for miles. It had been a long time since any person had been here, mostly because the land belonged to the WND foundation and no one was permitted to trespass on the property. It was discouraged actually if the fifteen-foot fences topped with barbed wire that ran around the perimeter were any indication.

Jumping the fence wasn't as hard as dodging the grizzly bears and pumas, especially since he was trying not to kill anything. Animal blood was Stefan's thing and the tolerance for it was not genetic; plus he didn't want Yvette to know he was here yet, and if anything was out of place she would know, that included any mysterious animal attacks.

He zigzagged through the thick trees, paying careful attention to his surroundings. He hadn't been here in thirty years and everything looked differently, but he was fairly sure that he was going the right direction. Yvette had a cabin built somewhere in this mess of wilderness and spent most of her time here, she had always preferred nature over city ever since she was a little girl—and that was a very long time ago. Damon didn't know too much about her origin, only that she turned vampire before America had been 'discovered' by Christopher Columbus. The foundation had been established over two hundred years ago, she founded the WND foundation to protect the environment or something or the other, but also to lay claim to the land that she belonged to long before any developer could snatch it up and butcher it.

"ACK!" the unmanly noise escaped out of his mouth before he could stop it, the pine branch slapping into his face made sure of that, and he ended up on his back.

"That's what you get for trespassing." Spoke an evenly toned voice, not threatening but intimidating all the same.

Damon opened his eyes to see a beautiful woman, who was not Yvette. Her skin the colour of beach sand, tanned and even, and had wild brown curls.

"And who are you?" he asked, not unfriendly, as he got to his feet.

The woman's eyes, an impossibly vibrant brown, widened and her lip curled into a slight snarl like an animal giving warning.

"Here I'd thought you'd be somewhat remorseful of getting caught."

"I don't do remorseful, not really my thing." He pokes offhandedly, with a tilt of his head and smirk. "Now what did you say your name was? While I'm asking nicely."

Truthfully, he had a long journey here with no rest and almost every thought annoyingly concerned Elena, he was not in the mood for his usual games.

She smiled in a cruel way.

"If this is you asking nicely, I'd hate to see you be rude."

Damon smiled.

"Yes, you would."

She laughed and the movement her chest made brought his eyes to the necklace around her neck, a simple chain with a heavy deep blue jewel pendant. Yvette's mark.

"What are you doing with that?" He asked while pointing at his own neck, all pretense of light heartedness gone from his voice.

She didn't even look down to see what he meant.

"It was given to me. As far as I know, you'll have to find something else for your beloved as it's the only one in existence."

Suddenly he understood, her saying 'beloved' reminded him of the meaning behind the necklace.

"Where is she?"

"Like I'd tell you."

"Oh come on, I know what you are to her. Aren't you curious how I know her?" with a wiggle of his eyebrows.

Her forehead wrinkled as he spoke, not liking what he was implying.

She started to hiss and then instantly stopped, sensing a silent presence.

"You two done?" A bored voice from up above and both vampires glanced upwards. Sitting on a branch thirty feet in the air was Yvette.

"When'd you get there?" asked wild hair unable to hide her smile, not actually asking the woman in the tree the question it was more directed at herself.

"Party pooper." Damon found himself saying as he looked at Yvette.

The old vampire stepped out of the tree and fell to the ground, landing on her feet with ease, looking at Damon the whole time.

"If I recall properly, the last time you were here, you attempted to kill me."

The other vampire hissed with great force until Yvette held up her hand to stop her.

"Please, Narcissa."

"Yes, but with minimal effort." His signature smirk written on his face.

Finally, the vampire smiled warmly towards him.

"It's nice to see you again, Damon."

"You too. You haven't aged a day!"

Yvette smiled, the closest she's ever come to laughing at Damon while sober.

"Let's take this conversation to a more comfortable place, shall we?"

(Back in Mystic Falls)

The bell rang and all the students headed for the door, having already packed up their stuff before class was officially over. Alaric tried not to take offense, it was the way students were, nothing personal, even if he hadn't finished his lesson.

Almost all the students were finished piling through the door, when one managed to make it into the classroom, against the current. Elena. Alaric felt his face tense a little in anticipation of what his instincts were telling him why she was here.

"Hey, Alaric." She spoke while adjusting her bag's strap on her shoulder, pulling her hair out from under it.

"Elena. What brings you here? A rousing discussion concerning the civil war?"

She smiled and looked down out of the corner of her eye and sighed a "not exactly".

"I was wondering if you had heard from," She hesitated, "Damon."

"Damon? Why would I?" He asked.

"Well, he's been scarce for the last two days, and you know, usually he's always around." She tried to make her words appear non committed as if she was 'just wondering' and not really caring about the answer.

He shrugged his shoulders.

"Sorry, Elena. Haven't heard a peep, squawk or sarcastic comment from Damon in days."

He could tell she was disappointed with his answer but she quickly acted dismissively.

"Okay, thanks, Alaric." She started to turn away to leave before he spoke.

"Elena?" She turned around, hand on her bag.

"Yeah?"

"Don't forget to study for the next on Thursday, I know you your stuff, but brush up on the dates of the battles?" Knowing full well that was one of her weakest points.

"Thanks." She answers with a laugh and soft smile before leaving the classroom.

Alaric didn't like lying to Elena, she was such a good kid and deserved to the truth but Damon was right, she needed some time away from Damon as much as he needed time from her.

Truthfully, he liked Stefan better for Elena but Damon had somehow become his closest friend and he deserved to be happy. Not continually hoping for Elena to notice him, only to be let down. If they ended up together, that'd be fine, Alaric wouldn't have much issue if they were both happy. But this game that Elena doesn't realize she's playing is hurtful to everyone around her.

It was hard to admit it but Damon was doing the right thing.


End file.
